OneVoice Blog, Empowering Israeli and Palestinian Citizens toward a Two State Solution

Palestinian and Israeli Youth Leaders negotiate common message

In the first joint meeting of Israeli and Palestinian Youth Leaders, three OneVoice members from Israel and Palestine came together in late June to commit to a common framework for their respective movements for the rest of 2009.

With the current focus of OneVoice on helping each side to break their own taboos and acknowledge the unspoken realities facing them, these Youth Leaders sat down to refine and recommit to a "common message" for both OneVoice Palestine and OneVoice Israel.While the work is ongoing, in just a few hours the teams were able to come to consensus on language supporting OneVoice's guiding principles:

• Non-partisan
• A grassroots movement led by the people and for the people
• A global partnership and coalition
• Working for conflict resolution, not conflict-management
• Forward-looking
• Focused on personal responsibility and civic activism
• Consensus-driven: we highlight existing areas of consensus where broad agreement exists amongst both sides, while acknowledging the areas where agreement is most difficult and working to address them
• A broad spectrum: we embrace people across political, ethnic, religious and national backgrounds.
• We believe in the principles of justice, freedom, sovereignty, security, self-determination, human dignity, and in the right of all peoples to exercise them.

OVI Town Hall Meeting in Beer Sheva tackles tough issues

Earlier this summer, OneVoice Israel ran a Town Hall Meeting in Beer Sheva designed to introduce participants to our recent poll and help them begin to think about taboo major issues. Initially, the participants had many questions about the poll itself -- how it was handled, who took part, how do we know it really represents the public, were all groups in Israeli and Palestinian societies represented, and so forth. They found it difficult, at first, to accept that this poll really says something about either community, and they kept on trying to check the accuracy of the presented data. As the meeting went on, their interest shifted to the issues themselves.

We then gave out sample questionnaires and asked the participants to fill them in, they could share the experience that the the survey participants went through. This was also meant as a "warm-up" exercise so that they would start thinking about the issues before the discussion began. They seemed to really get into it and wanted more time to fill out the questionnaires properly. Next, we went one by one through the major issues: final status, refugees, settlements, Jerusalem, borders, security, and then also through the issues of process -- the "blame game", trust-building measures, etc.

Participants were really interested to know the percentages on issues that were not mentioned in our initial presentation (for instance: how many Israelis and Palestinians support remaining in status-quo). We learned from this that each moderator should be accompanied by at least one other Youth Leader who can follow the presentation with the poll in his hands and be ready to assist the moderator and answering such questions.

--Kelly Breakstone, OneVoice Israel

OneVoice Palestine brings Town Hall Meetings to Jenin and Bethlehem

In the last month, Youth Leaders from OneVoice Palestine organized two Town Hall Meetings in Jenin and Bethlehem, working with new partners and bringing the movement to many new faces.

Maher Samodi, an active and dedicated Youth Leader, coordinated the Jenin meeting, partnering with the city's Student Service Center to set up logistics and invite participants and other attendees. He also presented the OVP presentation with amazing charisma, before the meeting began to discuss settlements with an expert.

Our Bethlehem meeting was a success as well; Youth Leader Ibrahim Mubarak brought together 27 new participants to learn together about the issues surrounding water and natural resources -- and the OneVoice movement as well. After a two hour presentation and a lot of questions and skepticism, the energy in the room changed and everyone felt the importance of the experience. Lots of the participants were interested not just in attending more town hall meetings, but in joining OneVoice as full members.

Next month, we'll continue with more Town Hall Meetings, as we focus this entire year on breaking the taboos, and saying what needs to be said.

Saying what needs to be said: OneVoice boards meet with Youth Leaders

In the last month, the OneVoice International, OneVoice Israel and OneVoice Palestine advisory boards have met close to home, bringing their own expertise to the movement's focus for the year: saying what needs to be said.

With June meetings in California and New York, July meetings in Israel, and ongoing meetings in Palestine, the boards came together in regional meetings, where we presented personal updates on our programs and goals for 2009, and got input and feedback on the issues and programs they care most about.

Israeli board members were particularly impressed with the increased role of the Youth Leaders, who have been taking on larger leadership roles in their organizations over the past 18 months. Through the formation of Youth Councils, OVI and OVP Youth Leaders have planned and executed their own local programming with the help of local staff, and become trained facilitators for Town Hall Meetings.

Moving forward, OneVoice will be working to strengthen this sort of integration between the boards and their regional branches, connecting our advisors and supporters with Youth Leaders and building local networks that can bring about real change.

OneVoice Letter from Ramallah: The Next Chapter

Less than four weeks ago, we unveiled results from the first-ever public citizen negotiations, through which 113,000 ordinary Palestinians and Israelis remarkably achieved consensus on ten essential pillars for conflict resolution after three intense rounds of voting. (September report.)

The obvious question that many of our members and supporters asked was, what is the next step?  What are ordinary Israelis and Palestinians to do now to amplify their voice and propel their political representatives to follow their clear will for conflict resolution?

Little did many of us know that the question would so swiftly acquire such grave historical urgency.

The passing of Yasser Arafat was mourned as the very personal loss of a valiant forefather by our 58,000 Palestinian members, while most of our 55,000 Israeli members saw the passing of a bitter terrorist enemy. 

Common ground amidst such stark dissonance could be easily overlooked once again.  Yet the dominant thought on both peoples’ minds, as well as among our 6,000 international supporters, is the same: a hope that tomorrow will bring one more chance for a comprehensive negotiated agreement, and a growing determination that this time we cannot be silent lest we once again fail the call for peace.

So what is the next phase for the OneVoice movement – and for the people of the region?  Ironically, it had begun on the eve of Arafat's passing in Ramallah with 68 exceptional young Palestinians.  They were selected after a rigorous interview process for OneVoice’s Leadership Development program, which aims to inspire and train hundreds of Palestinian and Israeli citizen leaders on nonviolent means to motivate and mobilize their fellow citizens to ensure political accountability through grassroots civic participation.

This training seminar took place as everyone in Ramallah awaited the impending announcement of their President’s death, and as they fasted for Ramadan.  Their mood was at once reflective and resilient.  They criticized the military occupation, but were receptive to meeting Israelis and working in a parallel partnership towards ending the conflict.  They questioned whether they could ultimately make a difference through nonviolent action, but their intense gaze answered their own questions with resonating determination to try.  Participants included women and men ages 18 to 28, all of them articulate and full of poise, with a diversity of political affiliations – Fatah, PFLP, Nidal and at least two from Hamas.

OneVoice was conceived in the aftermath of the second Intifadah, amidst an air of gloom and despair, to inspire ordinary citizens to stand up against extremism, and to recognize their duty to actively defend their vision, lest it be hijacked forever by absolutist agendas of the violent few. 

We recognized that in the era after the Barak-Arafat debacle, legitimacy for a breakthrough agreement would necessitate grassroots support, and one day would come when the time would be ripe for mobilization – so we started to prepare.  The Mideast never disappoints those who expect swift shifts.  It may well be that we are granted a rare opportunity for a comprehensive agreement among Israelis and Palestinians sooner than expected – but only if WE ALL STAND UP firmly in favor.

The NEXT STEPS in the OneVoice methodology, designed by hundreds of Israelis, Palestinians and international advisors over the last 3+ years, and refined and re-calibrated over the last 6 months of review, include the following:

•    DEEPEN THE IMPACT: Train a core group of civic society leaders on how to motivate and mobilize their brethren through the Civilian Leadership Program
•    BROADEN THE REACH: Sign up at least one hundred thousand more members and reach millions more through public workshops, televised civic negotiation broadcasts, internet campaigns, and people-to-people signature drives
•    MAGNIFY THE VOICE OF THE PEOPLE: Deploy a creative communications campaign including Public Service Announcements and Public Events geared to force the Media to showcase the will of ordinary citizens to resolve the conflict
•    ADDRESS THE EMERGING ISSUES: Continue forging broad-based consensus on issues important to the people of the region and highlighting them to their political representatives as well as to policymakers worldwide.

The above programs HAVE started.  We will NEED YOU TO BE A PART OF THIS HISTORIC DUTY.  Seldom do we get second chances or third chances.  We, the people, did not rise up to our duty as citizens and sufficiently support our leaders when they took courageous steps for peace in the past.  This time we all cannot fail peace again.  Over the next months, we will provide more information on the above, and we hope you will find your way to contribute to this effort.

OneVoice Surpasses 100,000 Palestinian and Israeli Citizen Negotiators

Today marks an important milestone for the silent majority:

*** OneVoice Surpasses 100,000 Palestinian and Israeli Citizen Negotiators ***

*** Group of Fifteen-Year Old Israelis Volunteer, Sign Thousands of New Members ***

***  “You are selling out our land openly and overtly!!!”  ***

*** 12 Hours under Mideast Sun: To Jericho At All Costs ***
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*** OneVoice Surpasses 100,000 Palestinian and Israeli Citizen Negotiators ***

July 21, 2004 – The third round of OneVoice citizen negotiations was completed ahead of schedule, with 113,852 Palestinians and Israelis signed up to date.  21,579 Palestinians participated in the OneVoice Public Negotiations Platform this round, bringing their total membership to 58,032.  23,800 Israelis joined the movement this round, bringing their total to 55,820.

Means of recruitment included focused workshops, door-to-door canvassing, voting booths at bus and train stations and other public places, internet voting, as well as recruitment by friends and colleagues at the workplace.

This last round began mid-June and was completed by July 10th, more than one month ahead of schedule, with over 40,000 new members. 

The campaign extended across Israeli cities including Be'er Sheva , Ofakim and Ashkelon in the South, Tel Aviv, Ramat Gan, Ra'anana, Kefar Saba, Hod Hashron, Netanya, and Hadera in the Central Region, and Haifa, Kriot, Acco, and Nahariya in the North. 

On the Palestinian side, campaigning was limited to the West Bank this round because voting ballots were twice disallowed through the checkpoint and time and financial constraints prevented further attempts.  Recruitment span across cities, villages and refugee camps in the Bethlehem district, Hebron, Nablus, Jenin, Tulqarem, Salfeet, Ramallah, Qalqelia, and Jericho.

*** “People are starting to believe they can have an impact” ***

Recruitment during this third round proceeded at a remarkably faster pace.  Early data seems to indicate that voting also yielded even greater consensus than in the prior round, though final data has yet to be tallied and will be unveiled in the next update.

“Seeing that the proposals are changing to reflect voters’ feedback makes the people feel that this is important,” said Roje Heinav, OneVoice’s Israeli Outreach Director.

“People are starting to believe they can have an impact,” added Nisreen Shaheen, OneVoice’s Palestinian Outreach Director.

Palestinian members of OneVoice took the initiative to create “Friends of OneVoice” membership cards and began distributing them.

The proposals are available at http://www.silentnolonger.org/wps/portal/_s.155/480 

*** Group of Fifteen-Year Old Israelis Volunteer, Sign Thousands of New Members ***

Over 100 teenagers from ages 15 to 18 approached OneVoice and offered to recruit members in summer camps.  The Israeli Employment Office, Youth and Educational Department, and the Youth Council facilitated the outreach.  Several youth movements are driving the summer campaign on the Israeli front.  Palestinian high school and university student groups are also very active with recruitment efforts.

*** “YOU ARE SELLING OUR LAND OPENLY AND OVERTLY!!!” ***

A Palestinian field worker approached a mid-aged man to join the citizen negotiations.  Before seeing the voting ballot, the man reacted with shock and screamed at him: “You are selling out our land openly and overtly!!!”  The field worker explained that OneVoice allows citizens to evaluate specific proposals and affirm or reject each of them. The man added, “Listen, nothing remains to be sold… …nothing can be done!”  The field worker asked him to at least take a look at the ballot.  After 20 minutes of reading the document and thinking about it, the man filled out the form.  The field worker was surprised to note that the man had accepted every one of the 10 proposals.

The above story is remarkable because it demonstrates that there is far more common ground than meets the eye.  Many Palestinians and Israelis don’t realize that there are concrete solutions to the seemingly “intractable” questions about how to achieve a resolution of the conflict.

*** 12 Hours under Mideast Sun: To Jericho At All Costs ***

While the campaign progresses, OneVoice field workers labor under enormous obstacles.  Many people are skeptical of the process or of their ability to make a difference.

Three Palestinian field workers quit this month after being insulted and threatened, with the voting ballots shred on their faces.  A number of Israeli field workers did not return any filled out voting ballots and just simply gave up.  But most others persisted and prevailed.

Israelis faced skepticism from those who questioned their efforts at reconciliation amidst a terror attack in Tel Aviv, while Palestinian field workers risked barriers, checkpoints and curfews to reach their constituents.  In one particularly poignant example of dedication, field trainers from Ramallah determined to reach a Jericho training seminar were denied passage through one checkpoint, switched routes and endured a two hour wait at Kalandia, waited again at the checkpoint to Jericho’s entrance for 2 hours, and finally persuaded the soldiers manning the checkpoint about the importance of the work (getting them to fill out some voting ballots in the process).  The soldiers let them pass on foot, and asked them to leave the car at the crossing.  They proceeded to walk to their destination, and successfully trained field workers in Jericho.

The most common complaint is that the questions are too long, or that they contain two clauses, one favorable to them and one favorable to the other side, forcing them to compromise on something they may not want to.  Field workers are trained to explain this is the essential question before them: whether to achieve something they value, voters would accept conceding something the other side values.  OneVoice teaches ordinary citizens about the art of negotiation.

See Pictures of outreach efforts in the OneVoice archive: http://www.silentnolonger.org/wps/portal/.cmd/cs/.ce/155/.s/404/.r/1  (select "pictures" and the date range).

***  Dare to Believe You Can Make a Difference ***

If you haven’t joined the movement and voted yourself, do so NOW at www.silentnolonger.org.

Get 10 other people to visit the website and vote.  Be part of the solution.

Support this effort financially.  Help us sign on one more citizen to participate in a constructive, concrete and non-violent process to establish an agreement among the peoples.  Your tax-deductible contribution can be made online at http://www.silentnolonger.org/wps/portal/_s.155/505.  To make a contribution via phone or mail to the Israeli, Palestinian, or American publicly-registered charities of OneVoice, contact darya@silentnolonger.org for information.

US Secretary of State Endorses OneVoice Public Negotiations

JOIN THOUSANDS OF CITIZEN NEGOTIATORS NOW
– www.silentnolonger.org –
TO ESTABLISH A POPULAR MANDATE FOR CONFLICT RESOLUTION

March 2004: thousands of Palestinians, Israelis and global supporters are becoming part of the solution.

***  Secretary of State Powell Applauds OneVoice
***  Israeli Citizen Negotiators Sign On at Universities, Workplace
***  Palestinian OneVoice Efforts Progress Despite Charged Atmosphere
***  Action Items: Vote

***  Action Item: Join OneVoice Business Delegation in Mideast May 11th

***SECRETARY OF STATE POWELL APPLAUDS ONEVOICE

US Secretary of State Colin Powell officially endorsed the OneVoice initiative of the PeaceWorks Foundation.  In a letter to the organization, Powell stated OneVoice is “important in helping to sustain an atmosphere of hope in which Israelis and Palestinians can discuss mutually acceptable resolutions to the difficult issues that confront them.” 

In an unusually strong endorsement of the process of engaging people on the ground as citizen negotiators, the Secretary of State added: “This is critical because, in the end, it is the Israeli and Palestinian people who will shape the consensus necessary to achieve a two-state solution.”

Powell finishes by “applauding” OneVoice’s efforts and its partnership with the Muhammad Ali Center, and “encourages” us “to continue to work towards peace in the region.”
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*** ISRAELI CITIZEN NEGOTIATORS SIGN ON AT UNIVERSITIES, WORKPLACE

OneVoice’s Israeli team has resorted to resourceful strategies to reach out to thousands of citizen negotiators.  Stationary Voting Booths are set up from shopping centers in Haifa to Bar-Ilan University.  Scores of volunteers and field workers also spread out across the country and canvass door to door, through member organizations, through parlor meetings at their homes, and groups.  One volunteer signed up twenty members at a barbershop, when they were waiting for their haircut.

People appreciate the process of being asked to affirm or reject proposals to help craft a mandate from the people, rather than being told to just sign off to a fixed plan.  But many are not patient and don’t want to deal with details and serious questions or are skeptical that they can make a difference.

Tens of thousands have visited the website, but less than 10% actually vote (a high percentage for internet statistics, but lower than hoped).  Energetic email campaigns to friends and colleagues succeed in increasing awareness and overcoming reticence.
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*** PALESTINIAN ONEVOICE EFFORTS PROGRESS DESPITE CHARGE ATMOSPHERE

In a month marked by Hamas Sheikh Ahmad Yasin’s assassination, Palestinian society was enveloped in an atmosphere of agitation, fear and anger.  With the general strike and total closure of Palestinian towns and villages, the OneVoice Palestinian office was closed for three days but re-opened to meet a charged and skeptical population.  While many Palestinians refused to participate in OneVoice’s citizen negotiations (“after the assassination of Yasin, I completely refuse any resolution”; “We are fed up, we don’t trust any initiative”), others felt it was all the more important to prevent “falling into a trap” and to vindicate Palestinian moderation.  Many Palestinians, like many Israelis, feel that only through an alliance between the peoples on the ground, will a resolution emerge.

Recruitment of Palestinian citizen negotiators faced setbacks.  Out of fifteen field workers trained in Bethlehem, only eight chose to continue after Yasin’s assassination.  In Ramallah and Birzeit, 10 of 15 workers stayed on board.  But in Hebron, all nine field workers decided to quit.  Yet the process ultimately withstood challenges: field workers often succeeded in overcoming skepticism by explaining that, unlike other efforts in the past, people could opt to “agree to” or “reject” each proposal.

In spite of extremely tight budgets that required OneVoice to focus on a smaller number of cities and villages initially, thousands of citizen negotiators signed up.  Outreach included briefings to the Public Committee in Al-Am’ary Refugee Camp, the Ramallah Municipality, the coordinator of women activities in refugee camps, the General Union of Palestinian Students, scientists, business leaders, and women organizations.

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***  ACTION ITEMS: VOTE

If you haven’t joined the movement and voted yourself, do so NOW at www.silentnolonger.org.    

Get 10 other people to visit the website and vote.  Be part of the solution.

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*** ACTION ITEM: JOIN ONEVOICE BUSINESS DELEGATION IN MIDEAST MAY 11th

A delegation of foremost Christian, Jewish and Muslim business leaders will visit the Middle East to endorse the OneVoice movement and visit efforts on the ground.  The trip will include meetings with dignitaries, spiritual authorities, and business leaders; delegates will visit Israeli and Palestinian grassroots efforts and participate in a town hall meeting.  Delegates may also continue on to the World Economic Forum’s Summit in the Dead Sea, in the Hashemite Kingdom.  For more information, contact Darya Shaikh at +1 212 897 3985 x233.

Queen Rania, Dignitaries Sign Onto OneVoice Proclamation at World Economic Forum

To permanently seize back the agenda away from those who seek to inflame hatreds and derail progress towards peace in the Middle East, the people need to stand up and actively guard diplomatic efforts.

Traditionally, people in the "silent majority" have just stood by.  But something is happening.

Courageous leaders and people on the ground are awakening people into the realization that peace takes work and is an active responsibility (as you can read below).

In a major development, moderates are standing up and raising their voice on Palestinian and Israeli streets.

Their message is still fledgling.  But OneVoice is providing a critical platform to strengthen them. 

Read about the remarkable momentum that Palestinians and Israelis fighting for a better future are gaining.  Your audience will be intrigued and stimulated to learn about this historic movement.

***QUEEN RANIA, SCORES OF DIGNITARIES SIGNED ONTO ONEVOICE PROCLAMATION AT WORLD ECONOMIC FORUM SUMMIT IN JORDAN: Heads of State, Foreign Ministers, UN Ambassadors,  Congressmen, Business Leaders, and Architects of the Roadmap endorsed the OneVoice initiative.  WEF Summit Pictures: http://silentnolonger.com/econ_forum.html

View sample list of influential signatories: http://silentnolonger.com/signatories.html

Besides Palestinian and Israeli signatories, dignitaries and business leaders from Algeria, Bosnia, Canada, Costa Rica, Egypt, France, Germany, India, Jordan, Mexico, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Spain, Turkey, the United Kingdom, and the United States signed the Proclamation and expressed support towards this historic movement to empower the silent majority. 

***MEDIA COVERAGE BY ARAB, ISRAELI, INTERNATIONAL TV AND NEWSPAPERS: Dr. Fathi Darwish was interviewed by Al-Arabiyah TV and Al Jazeera; Al Rai Daily, Jordan Times and Ad-Dustour Newspapers featured OneVoice on their pages, as did Globes newspaper, Sontagsblick and Blick, among others. See coverage at http://www.silentnolonger.com/wtas_news.html

***ISRAELI DIGNITARIES SUPPORT OV LAUNCH: See Pictures of the OneVoice-Israel Launch
http://silentnolonger.com/isr_launch.html

***NGOS JOIN ONEVOICE: Dozens of organizations such as PARC, the Palestinian Agricultural Relief Committee, the largest Palestinian member-organization, with 10,000 Palestinian farmers as its members, have agreed to assist with outreach efforts.  Visit the growing roster of International, Israeli, and Palestinian Affiliate Organizations that are helping with outreach efforts: http://www.silentnolonger.com/op_orgs.html

***ISRAELI ONEVOICE MEDIA CAMPAIGN PREPARED: you can visit sample ads of the Israeli OV campaign at http://www.silentnolonger.com/samples.html

***PALESTINIANS RESOURCEFULLY TRAVEL BY HORSE & DONKEY TO REACH OUT: Scores of Palestinian outreach volunteers and staff members are carpeting villages and towns as they gather signatures for the Proclamation.  Overcoming travel restrictions, some resilient members rode horses and donkeys to reach their destinations. Thousands of signatures have been gathered, from dozens of villages and cities, including Ramallah, Nablus and Jenin.  See sample pictures at http://silentnolonger.com/pal_outreach.html

Staff members initially encountered suspicion and accusations of treason in some of the refugee camps.  But leaders across the spectrum of Palestinian politics – including Fatah, People’s Party, FIDA, and Nidal – as well as the heads of the Youth Committees – intervened and were instrumental in explaining the initiative’s importance to the Palestinian people.  Civil society, PLC, and community leaders encouraged their constituents and members to participate.

CONSTRAINED BY BUDGETS, THE PALESTINIAN TEAM HAS BEEN FORCED TO REDUCE ITS OUTREACH EFFORTS.  Expenses include transportation costs, printing costs, rental of meeting places, rental of sound reinforcement systems, fees to trainers, and fees to staff workers.

***ALL OF THE ABOVE EFFORTS COST MONEY; IF YOU BELIEVE IN THE CRITICAL IMPORTANCE OF THIS EFFORT, RECOGNIZE THAT YOUR FINANCIAL SUPPORT IS NEEDED. Every dollar helps reach out and strengthen moderates to seize back the agenda from violent extremists.

TAX-DEDUCTIBLE CONTRIBUTIONS CAN BE MAILED to The PeaceWorks Foundation, PO Box 999, New York, NY 10156, through our website (www.silentnolonger.org/wycd_donate.html), or by calling +1 (212) 897-3985 x103. Non-profit status has also been achieved with the Israeli and Palestinian authorities.

***HELP SPREAD THE WORD: Share this historic initiative with ten people today. Forward this update to them. If you have contacts in the media, forward this email to them and encourage them to learn more at www.silentnolonger.org/downloads/presskit.pdf. Otherwise, write a letter to the editor of your local newspaper. If in the United States, write a letter to your member of congress to inform him or her about the OneVoice movement.

***VITAL STATISTICS***
 
   Number of
BODY   Members  Web Access

Steering Committee 13  www.silentnolonger.org/wwa_steering.html 
Honorary Board Advisors 17  www.silentnolonger.org/wwa_hon_advisors.html
Board of Trustees  21  www.silentnolonger.org/wwa_trustees.html
Council of Experts 7  To be Unveiled in July
Ad Hoc Advisory Council 245  http://www.silentnolonger.com/wwa_adhoc.html
Entertainment Council 26  http://silentnolonger.com/wwa_entcouncil.html
Staff/Core Volunteers 21/28  http://www.silentnolonger.com/wwa_team.html
Donors/Members  201  http://www.silentnolonger.com/op_support.html
Committed Volunteers 95  N/A
Exec. Supporters List 687  N/A
Gen. Supporters List 1120  N/A
Member Organizations 25  http://www.silentnolonger.com/op_orgs.html
Proclamation Signatories6203  http://www.silentnolonger.com/wycd_resolution.html
People's Mandate Sign -  Not Yet Developed
Total Number Involved 8663  N/A

Number of Core Issues On Which
Broad Consensus Has Been Attained None Yet

***REMEMBER***
We can and will amplify the heretofore silent voice of the overwhelming majority; we can and will empower moderates to seize back the agenda from violent extremists. Hard work lies ahead. But we will not waver, for too much is at stake. Our goal is to achieve consensus for conflict resolution at the grassroots level, with a People's Mandate containing ten key points of agreement based on security, dignity, respect, and the right to build a better future for the next generation of Palestinians and Israelis-supported and signed on to by the broadest segment of the population we can reach, through a variety of innovative platforms. See www.silentnolonger.org/wwd_work.html

The potential of this movement is nothing less than historic in magnitude. Our methodology provides a concrete path towards constructively unleashing the power of the people, bestowing upon them the responsibility and the ability to take back their lives-to make a difference with their united voice. With the challenges our civilization is facing, it is imperative that this initiative succeed. Make the pledge to get involved, and be a part of the solution.

OneVoice - Nov-Dec Update & Action Advisory

Below is OneVoice's Update for November-December 2002.

2003 is the year when, together, we will make a positive and concrete difference -- by amplifying the voice of the silent majority and helping moderates seize back the agenda for conflict-resolution, through an innovative process empowering Israelis and Palestinians at the grassroots level to participate in broad-based negotiations and achieve historic working solutions.  So Happy New Year!

***MAJOR DEVELOPMENTS****

*IBM FOUNDATION TO DONATE SOFTWARE AND HARDWARE: Stanley Litow, President of the IBM Foundation, announced at a breakfast for heads of different foundations, that IBM will be donating software and hardware to build the OneVoice platform.

*DARAWSHE AND DJAVAHERI APPOINTED TO EXECUTIVE TEAM: Mohammad Darawshe was appointed as Regional Director of OneVoice for the Middle East; Sepi Djavaheri joins as Acting Executive Director in the US.

*BOARD OF TRUSTEES UNVEILED:  OneVoice officially unveiled the founding members of its Board of Trustees this month; the seventeen foremost business leaders include Global Leaders of Tomorrow of the World Economic Forum and members of YPO.  The group includes CEOs of some of the most dynamic, largest, and/or fastest-growing companies in the world, influential attorneys, a world-renown cardiac surgeon, prized consultants, and award-winning writers and producers.

*GLOBAL HEADS OF JEWISH, CHRISTIAN AND MUSLIM COMMUNITIES RALLYING BEHIND ONEVOICE: Spiritual and community leaders in the Mideast and in the US are coming together in a rare show of solidarity to support the OneVoice initiative.  Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf and Rabbi Harvey Fields are among those recently appointed to the Honorary Board of Advisors.  Full HBOA to be unveiled in January.

*READ TRANSCRIPTS OF RECENT ONEVOICE INTERVIEWS (including FOX TV, ACJ/MEI Release, and US Department of State) on our Archive.

*HOLLYWOOD AND MIDEAST CELEBRITIES TO FORM ONEVOICE ENTERTAINMENT COUNCIL: Actors, writers, producers, and directors are joining campaign to strengthen moderates through OneVoice's concrete non-violent path to conflict resolution.

* BRIEFINGS REACH HUNDREDS: Briefings were held in Washington D.C., New York City, Los Angeles, San Francisco, London, Ramallah, Um-el-Fahem, Jerusalem,  and Tel Aviv.  Over the past two months, over four hundred business, community and spiritual leaders were briefed.

*PROCLAMATION OF PRINCIPLES RECONFIGURED TO SINGLE DOCUMENT: Upon the advice of the Ad Hoc Advisory Committee and further review from the Steering Committee, the Proclamation of Principles for Reconciliation was redrafted into one unified document that both Israelis and Palestinians will sign on to (as opposed to a Palestinian and Israeli version).  The shorter document will be accompanied by "convocations" from Israelis and Palestinians that will contain more cathartic and heartfelt language.  The Proclamation will be officially unveiled after the conclusion of Israeli elections.

*COORDINATION WITH ALIGNED EFFORT: OneVoice met with a closely-aligned organization, The People Vote (spearheaded by Ami Ayalon and Sari Nusseibeh), which has a very different methodology but very similar objectives to OneVoice; both organizations pledged to support each other's efforts and coordinate to ensure synergy wherever possible.

***VITAL STATISTICS***

   Number of
BODY   Members  Web Access

Steering Committee 11  http://www.silentnolonger.com/wwa_steering.html
Honorary Board Advisors 7  To be Unveiled In January
Board of Trustees  17  http://www.silentnolonger.com/wwa_trustees.html
Council of Experts 5  To be Unveiled in March
Ad Hoc Advisory Council 173  Being Built
Staff/Core Volunteers 4/12  http://www.silentnolonger.com/wwa_team.html
Donors/Members  130  Being Built
Committed Volunteers 62  N/A
Exec. Supporters List 300  N/A
Gen. Supporters List 483  N/A
Total Number Involved 1200
Member Organizations 14  Being Updated
Proclamation Signatories--  Not Yet Disseminated
People's Mandate Sign --  Not Yet Developed

Number of Core Issues On Which
Broad Consensus Has Been Attained  None Yet